A Gentle Touch
by lunarbullets
Summary: When we first met, I thought you were a frail, useless weakling. Now that I know you, you are the kindest, strongest person I know. LeoSaku. Hinted TakuLise.


**Hello, everyone!**

 **I'm back with another Fire Emblem story, but this time its LeoSaku, or Leo/Sakura!**

 **I like writing for unpopular ships, don't I?**

 **Even if you do not enjoy or support this ship, I ask for you guys to take some time to read and leave a review, so I can improve my writing!**

 **Thank you for everyone who reads this, and now, on to the story!**

 **- _CelestialScript_**

* * *

 **A Gentle Touch**

Prince Leo had got fond of watching Princess Sakura at her work; it was entrancing, the way she would glide over without sound, spread her palms over the suffering soldier. Major or not, worry would be always etched on her face, tears would prick in her orbs, she would sniffle before turning away, gently swathing a gauze onto the wound.

He found her kindness unlimited, unique and strange; her actions did not waver even with the wounded of the opposing kingdom. On the contrary, she would work even harder for their sick, as if proving her support of the two kingdom's truce.

The two, after Leo's mistaking the shrine maiden as broken and weak, had gotten noticeably close. She would strive to help everyone whenever she was able, earning the Nohrian Prince's respect. He had made it a habit of perching atop a barrel, just barely hidden, observing her at work, carefully curing the warriors. It wasn't that he was spying on her actions to see her loyalty of the treaty between Hoshido and Nohr; that was the ninja Saizo's occupation. No, he enjoyed it.

Sakura's time was almost up; sweeping softly past the cold steel beds with only cotton sheets for comfort, she paused by the cot at the very end, to brush out the gray bangs from the sweaty forehead of the young man. Her lip trembled at the sight of her injured elder brother, Takumi, who was resting, face occasionally contorting into a pained grimace, or a whimper of pain.

As Leo, watched, her small, dainty hands cupped the archer's calloused ones, a gentle light emitting from hers to spread over him. A calm expression descended over him, and she gently laid his arm back down, turning away to exit, but not before catching sight of Leo crouched atop the shelf, chewing a tomato as if it was an apple.

"Prince L-Leo?" her voice came out in a whisper, disbelieving eyes targeted at him, silently asking him what he was doing. He slung himself down, resting himself against the dull gray concrete walls, still nibbling at the red tomato. Her gaze flickered to the small half-eaten fruit resting in his onyx gauntlets. "I-Is that a t-tomato?"

He did not bother responding to her unintelligible question, instead stretching up to his legs, him towering up much farther than her, which made her look much like a small shrimp, if he could say so himself, smoothly flinging the tomato core behind his shoulder, ignoring the minuscule thump it made.

"Ah, Princess Sakura. You seem to be finished with your job here, are you not? Why do you not come bask in the sunlight alongside me, you've been stuck in this drafty location long enough."

"Y-yes, but… I-I need to watch over the s-sick..."

"Ah, come along. I'm certain that Elise will be here any second to take over for you."

On cue, the hyperactive twin-tailed Nohrian princess skipped in, arms laden with healing rods and staves, as well as non-magic items, such as ointments and gauges. With no argument in her case, Sakura grudgingly trudged after the smug mage.

"W-where are w-we going?" she asked, nearly tripping over herself in her haste to keep up with Leo's fast pace.

"Nowhere in particular." he replied, cradling the violet book he always carried around by his side, affectionately stroking the elaborate cover.

"O-oh." He good-naturedly rolled his eyes at her usual stammer, the one that sprung up in her words even if she was not nervous.

They did not speak until he led her to a glade of cherry blossoms, they had been planted just recently. With the dragon veins, they had immediately grown to full height, rosy petals billowing around the two. She had collapsed with her back to the rough, chocolate-shaded tree bark, fingers nervously twiddling. The shy girl had something in her mind, Leo knew. And he was sure that he knew why.

"You're worried about your elder brother, Prince Takumi," he said, voicing her thoughts. It was a statement, not a question. Leo and the Hoshidian prince were not exactly on good terms, but he strode to be polite to him in favor of Sakura, who cared about him tremendously.

The maiden did not verbally respond, instead nodding wordlessly, peering down fixedly at her laced fingers. Although not glancing at her face, he knew that tears were filling her coral orbs, but she was most likely straining to hold them back.

Patiently waiting for her to cease the water, she wiped them with the back of her pale hands, then gazed back at Leo.

"He will be fine," he told her, voice monotone, with just a hint of care. "Your brother… Is stronger than he may seem, even if it is not on the interior. Although it would be very inconsiderate of me telling you this, I do think you may be worrying… Just a little bit too much."

"I… Actually t-think you are r-right." she smiled weakly up at him, but then her smile fell. "But I s-still won't be able to s-stop being sad, until he is cured…"

"Ah, I'm sure Elise will be sure to revive his strength back." he replied, suppressing a smile, remembering how he had run into both of them fast asleep in the far end of the Hunting Forest, hands intertwined.

"I hope b-both of u-us can help him…" she sighed, looking into the horizon in the distance.

The two royals descended into a comfortable silence, only disturbed by the chirps of obnoxious birds, before Leo brought up what had been whirling in his mind throughout the day.

"As we both are here now… Would you mind if I asked you something, Princess Sakura?"

Said girl looked up from the buttercups she had been admiring, nodding tentatively. "O-of course!"

"Do you believe in love at first sight, Sakura?"

The Hoshidian princess seemed taken back from his forward question. "L-love at f-first s-sight?" If Leo was not incorrect, she seemed to be stuttering and stammering much more than usual.

"Yes. Do you believe in it?"

"W-well, n-no." Leo raised his eyebrow, surprised. It was not the response he had been expecting from the nervous girl.

"Why would that be?"

"I-I... S-see-"

She was definitely stammering more than she did, the mage decided.

"L-love at f-first sight means t-that the person does not l-love the p-person on how t-they are themselves. The person j-just loves them in regard to their outer b-beauty."

Sakura's words hit Leo hard. The sentence seemed simple, but its meaning ran much deeper.

It made him smile on how the sentence referred so much to his state.

Before he knew it, he had leaned over and wrapped his arms around the salmon-haired girl, resting his chin on her head, laughing.

"L-Leo?!" Sakura now visibly resembled a tomato, her shock at his actions was apparent in her embarrassed expression.

"I agree, Sakura." Leo murmured, voice slightly muffled. "I could not agree more with you."

 _When we first met, I thought you were a frail, useless weakling. Now that I know you, you are the kindest, strongest person I know._

 **The End**


End file.
